Sustainability
Summer Series: Country Life for January 12
Stories from the 2023 archive: Cosmo's at a high country station in the far south, Leah checks in on a toy treasure trove in Te Puke and Sally's off grid with a former Wellington mayor. Audio
Building a wetland on farm
A wetland at the bottom of a dairy farm in South Wairarapa is reducing most of the nitrates being drained from the paddocks. The project at Kaiwaiwai Dairies is nearly a decade old and one of the… Audio
From water to wine: The story of Dancing Petrel
An idyllic lifestyle change for Kim and Graham Gilkison from Taranaki to the Far North saw them also purchase a languishing vineyard. Five years later, they're producing award winning wines. Audio
Help to make businesses sustainable
Most businesses want to do the right thing when it comes to being sustainable But finances, a lack of understanding, and time constraints can prevent them from investing in nature. Audio
Gin distillery fizzes with plans for home-grown juniper
Kapiti distillers harvest kawakawa from their historic Wairarapa farm to make award-winning gin. They're also trialling growing juniper berries and planting more natives. Novel pest traps, a bottle… Audio
The woes of wool
Wool was once the backbone of our agriculture industry, but now farmers are struggling to make a buck from it. What happened? Audio
A tree for every woman
Kauri Forno runs a tree nursery in Gisborne which has been donating trees around Te Tai Rāwhiti for the past three decades. The Women's Native Tree Project Trust started with the aim of planting a… Audio
Geobind: Carbon neutral building panels made of hemp
Kerikeri builder Doug Sturrock was looking for sustainable building materials similar to those in available in Europe, but when he couldn't find them on the New Zealand market, he decided to develop… Audio
Report: Business keen to 'do the right thing' by nature
A new report has found most businesses are keen to invest in nature projects - but want easy and trustworthy ways to do it. The Sustainable Business Network surveyed 283 businesses of various sizes… Audio
Cohousing : how it is working in NZ
We're checking in with two innovative co-housing initiatives at separate ends of the country. Audio
Coffee & Tee: NZ company turning coffee waste into golf tees
There's an environmental revolution brewing on the golf course, and it's all about your coffee discards. Waste coffee grounds collected from NZ cafes will be used to make biodegradable golf tees for… Video, Audio
A quarter-acre food paradise in Gisborne
Adrian Sutherland has more than a hundred fruit trees on his slice of suburban Gisborne and plenty of veges besides. Audio
What next for NZ's big emitters?
NZ Steel's done a deal with the government that'll cut its carbon emissions. Will the country's other big emitters follow their lead? Audio
Composting loo and eating insects because "why wouldn't you"
Melissa and Aaron Jacobson are trying to live as sustainably as possible on their small property perching ontop a hill outside of Eltham, Taranaki and plan to turn their way of life into a full-time… Audio
Off grid and farming carbon
Former Wellington mayor Celia Wade-Brown lives in a tiny off-grid house and regenerates native forest on a former sheep and beef farm on the flanks of the Tararua mountain range. The carbon… Audio
Trappers unite over the net
Amid the shiny tractors, new sheep breeds and delicious smelling spit roast at the Central Districts Fieldays in Feilding this weekend, was a stand featuring different types of pest traps. People were… Audio
Our Changing World - Our cities' green future
PhD candidate Maggie McKinnon reckons the future of city buildings is green – literally. She's investigating the optimal native vertical garden for Wellington's wind-blasted walls. Claire Concannon… Audio
Fishing the depths of the south
Fisher Nate Smith is passionate about sustainable fishing - he's the driving force behind Gravity Fishing which operates between Southland and Rakiura/Stewart Island. He is the latest generation in a… Audio
The little Kiwi drinks company that's making a big splash
Karma Drinks has spent the past 12 years building a company that aims to make the most ethical soft drinks in the world. Its ingredients are ethically sourced, organic and one percent of revenue from… Audio
Esther Lofley - environmentally responsible fashion
The fashion industry is notoriously wasteful - for instance, cheap clothing that lasts months rather than years before ending up in landfills. But an expat now based in the US is leading by example… Audio, Gallery